A Thousand Names
by DragonStorm85
Summary: Mini-fic. They were one of the most respected clans in the village. But as proud as Tenten was of her family, even she had her moments of doubt. What importance is placed in a name? Can a story and a bit of history change what the other kids say?
1. Part 1

**Title**: A Thousand Names - Part 1**  
Character(s)**: Tenten, Sandaime, OCs: Sarutobi Katsuro, Sarutobi Mei, Shirou; brief mentions of Sarutobi Asuma  
**Pairing(s)**: Shirou/Mei  
**Warning(s)**: Creative license of events and making use of unknown information in the Naruto timeline; OCs to fill in the gap that is Tenten's history.  
**Disclaimer**: I own nothing but these words.  
**Note**: Part one of a planned two-shot, although it might turn out to be a three-shot depending on how the second part goes. Written for Tenten's birthday March 9, 2008, although clearly this was not finished until well after (apologies my dear Tenten! D:). Takes place in the same universe as 'Trapped in Your Legacy' (Chapter 18) and 'Where to Start From' (Chapter 20) from DEB, respectively, with Tenten being the Sandaime's granddaughter.  
**Special thanks to**: malinear from LJ, for helping me flesh out Mei's character.  
**Dedicated to**: Tenten, because everyone deserves some sort of back-story 3

- No way! No one could hit all those without missing! -  
- Cheater! -  
- Just what kind of kunais are those anyways? They look funny. -  
- Girls can't be shinobi. They aren't strong enough. -  
- Yeah! You don't even have a family name! -  
- You're just a nobody. -  
- I...I am not! -_  
...Am I?_  
- Nobody! -  
- Weirdo! -  
- Freak! -

-x-

"They're wrong!...Right?"

Tentatively, she held out the palms of her hands to catch the light of the slowly fading sun on the horizon, utilizing the long shadows of dusk to scrutinize every line, every dirt-covered crease, every scar she had already received in her young life. She took pride in them no matter what her peers believed or said, or how much they would tease her for it. When they would break and crack from the strain, she loved them all the more. After all, each had been made one by one from her long hours of training and stood as a mark of the girl's slow achievements, working diligently with the shinobi tools until they became so much a part of herself, until there could be no distinction from the cold steel gleaming along the razor-sharp edges and the cool determination that reflected in Tenten's eyes. But still, doubt had spawned from her classmate's words, and the young girl could not help but feel a trickle of disgrace for allowing such a seed to flourish in her mind and in her heart. She never wanted to feel ashamed for her family.

With a soft sigh, the young kunoichi-in-training lowered her arms in disappointment and crossed the street to resume her trek towards home, the soft soles of the girl's shoes brushing almost soundlessly against the dirt road. She was already late, but no amount of urgency or respectfulness could motivate the girl to move any faster than a slow and shuffling pace, too lost in her own failure to defend against the taunts the other children had aimed at Tenten's family. Her robes shifted gently in the breeze, the edges swaying this way and that with the young girl's movements while loose strands that had managed to escape their ribbon-bound prisons tickled across Tenten's cheek and neck. In an idol manner, she made to sweep them aside and out of the way, letting her feet walk the path that she knew all too well while earthy-brown eyes faded into the world of the girl's mind.

The words that the other children had barked at her were nothing out of the ordinary, merely things they had picked and prodded at every day when her shurikens hit their mark with an almost perfect accuracy that seemed unbelievable to any who stood a witness to the feat. But what had truly bothered Tenten were the comments made towards her family, namely the lack of a surname that would root her into the foundation of Konoha and its history, or so they said. But...she was already deeply rooted into the village.

"Hey, kiddo."

In a blink, Tenten's eyes snapped out of the blurred illusions of her mind to refocus on reality and the two men that stood before her. Like second nature, she gave a small bow of respect to them, addressing both like she would any other adult. The smile on her face was faint but warm, though it seemed to be weighed down by the strain of the day's events, making the young girl seem weary with fatigue, an easy indication on her current mood. She was never very good at hiding things, especially from her own family. "Hi Grandpa, Uncle Katsuro."

Through the long years, the young kunoichi-in-training had watched her family with a careful observance that only children could possess, learning of their behavior and the emotions that were hidden behind them. And so the look that passed between the two men, the concerned laced within their glances, did not go unnoticed by the young Tenten. They were among the most powerful ninjas in the village, but they were also naive in underestimating her perceptiveness. After all, as the granddaughter of the Sandaime of Konoha and with rumors milling about the village about her Uncle Asuma being appointed as one of the Twelve Elite Guardians of the Fire Country's Daimyo, it was no surprise that the girl would possess a level of understanding beyond her peers, even at the young age of seven.

Yes. No doubt, great things would be expected of her in the future.

"So what's going on, squirt?" Katsuro inquired cheerfully, placing a tender hand between the two tightly wrapped buns on either side of her head and giving a slight ruffle of the loose strands that had managed to escape, "You're usually good about being home by now."

Her grandfather gave a nod in agreement. "No doubt your mother is worried about where you are."

"I know." She gave a light chuckle and quickly took a hold of the offending hand to keep what small order that still remained in her untamed hair. "I was training and lost track of time."

It was truthful enough, though not completely so. Indeed, Tenten had been training as she always did every afternoon after the students were released from the Academy, such was the level of her dedication in carrying on the family legacy of the Sarutobi clan. But it was when she begun to mull over her classmate's words concerning her lack of a family name, and not the training itself, that the young girl had became distracted from coming home at her usual time. But the others did not need to know about all of that. It would only worry them more than they already were. This was her burden to carry not theirs. Both her grandfather and Uncle Katsuro had bigger things to focus on, the Sandaime especially with the weight of an entire village balanced on the old man's shoulders.

But despite that, the elder of the Sarutobi brothers had just enough cause to see through her little white lie, prompting him to pushed a little more for the truth. "You sure that's all it was?"

Tenten gave a small shrug, feigning a sort of innocent at his concern. "What else would it be, Uncle?"

"Well - "

" - I think that's enough, Katsuro." The interruption had caught both adult and child off guard. But with a bit of relief from the youngest of the three, Katsuro and Tenten both turned to face the patriarch of their family. "Tenten's already late and has no time to answer questions if she hopes to get home before her mother sends out a search party. Why don't you escort her the rest of the way to perhaps...ease Mei's concerns? After all, as I recall, you had a tendency to be a bit late every now and then, yourself."

"Uh...heh. Right. Sure dad, no problem." Tenten did all that she could to suppress a soft chuckle from slipping past her tiny lips, only just managing to bring her chubby fingers up to cover the grin spreading across the little girl's face as Katsuro simply stood there scratching at the back of his head with some level of embarrassment. Catching the small snickers, he reached down to ruffle the loose strands of her hair once more in retaliation before waving her to follow him down the road. "Come on, squirt. Let's go."

Another giggle managed to escape as little Tenten turned towards the village leader to give him a respectful bow, turning with a cheerful wave while she rushed to catch up to her uncle. "Bye grandpa!"

"Hey, I'll race you home!" Katsuro called out over his shoulder while he sped up his pace to gain a small head start.

With a childish squeal, the academy student doubled her efforts, glad for the distraction that only her family could provide. While it was true that they could not always be together, and there were days when she could not help but wonder about them -- Where had Uncle Asuma gone? Why did he go away in the first place? Why did grandpa's smile shrink a little when someone would say his name? What exactly did her mother see when she would spend hours staring at the Hokage monument? -- there was no doubt that they all cared about each other.

The prospects of their little race made the trip home quicker, and it was not long before she saw the glow of the lantern lights on her front porch. And there was her mother, waiting with a mildly concerned look on her face as Tenten knew she would be. Time to pay the piper.

"There you are!" the kunoichi called softly at their approach, worry melting away to relief when she caught sight of her missing daughter, "I was beginning to worry."

"Yeah, sorry about that, Mei," Katsuro called in return, sparing a glance to Tenten to give the girl a discreet wink. _Don't worry, I'll keep you out of trouble_, it seemed to say. "We just sort of lost track of time."

"How typical of you, Katsuro," the elder Sarutobi reprimanded, though there was a hint of amusement in her tone that made her comment seem more teasing and playful, "Honestly, I can't understand sometimes how you became a shinobi."

"What can I say? At least I'm reliable." He gave a light-hearted laugh, fumbling through the mess of dark hair to scratch at the back of his head in embarrassment at such a truth. But the moment quickly passed as Katsuro gave Tenten a gentle and loving pat on the head before beginning his own trek towards home. "Well I'm off, then. I just wanted to make sure the squirt made it home alright."

"It would've been better if you had done that an hour ago," her mother retorted.

"Hey, she's in one piece, isn't she?" the younger of the two siblings countered. "See you later, kiddo!"

And with one final wave he was gone, leaving Tenten to watch wordlessly as she began feeling the same doubts from before begin to resurface. Without any outlet to point her attentions to, her young mind could only focus on why she had been out so late in the first place when crossing paths with her uncle and grandfather on the streets.

"Come on, sweetie. Dinner will be ready in a little bit." One last glance at Katsuro's form disappearing in the distance, and the kunoichi-in-training turned to head inside, making sure to avoid any sort of eye contact with her mother. Because it would be too hard to face the gentle eyes of the woman with these questions and thoughts floating through her mind. So with a quiet nod, Tenten stepped pass her mother and headed inside without another word.

"Ten?...Is something the matter?"

Always so perceptive. Just like a mother. She should have expected that. Her mother was a kunoichi of Konoha after all, and one of the top ranking Special Jounin in the defense department. Of course it would not be so easily to hide this, especially if someone of Katsuro's level and skills could pick up on Tenten's mood. Glancing over the slim curve of her shoulder, the little girl shook her head for what seemed like the hundredth time that afternoon, indicating a polite 'No' and continued inside.

"Tenten?..." It was the tone of her voice, the softness in which Mei spoke her name that had stopped the young girl in her tracks, pausing to give all attention to her mother, though she kept her back to the older woman for fear of finding out what she had discovered. "Did the kids make fun of you again today?"

For a moment, Tenten thought of lying, of saying that it was anything else but the truth to save them both another lecture on how the other children were fools and that there was no reason to be ashamed of their taunts. But the kunoichi-in-training could not lie to her, not when her voice had been so kind and gentle as it always had been. It did not just sound like a mother concerned for her child, but a cherished friend who only wished to help. So wordlessly, hesitantly, Tenten gave a small nod. She could keep no secrets from her own mother.

With that affirmation, Tenten could only turn her gaze to the ground as she heard Mei sigh, the light tap of her footsteps following the young girl inside. Wordlessly, the young kunoichi placed her things down and proceed to the dining room to help set the table for dinner, something she had always done every single day after school. It was a small feeling of normalcy and a great comfort for what promised to be an uncomfortable evening as the girl felt the weight of her mother's eyes following her every movement.

The silence seemed to stretch on forever, neither female making any attempts to push or forget the matter as Mei moved to seat herself on the arm of the couch in the next room, still watching her young daughter with a careful eye. Finally, as Tenten was reaching up to collect the utensils from the drawer, her mother broke the silence, her voice barely audible but still with the same care she had always held. "It...must be hard for you."

The young girl paused from her work to mull over that statement for a moment before responding, a bit unsure of how she actually felt about the situation. "Not really. Just...a little confused."

"Confused?" Mei tilted her head curiously, watching while Tenten came into the livingroom and seated herself on the couch before continuing. The table. Dinner. It could all wait. "What do you mean?"

"Mom?..." Here, the girl paused, hesitant to proceed but knowing that she had to in order to find the answers her young mind was seeking. "Why don't we have a family name? I mean, I know grandpa is the Sandaime, but..."

Another sigh escaped as Mei shifted to face her daughter, struggling to form the words that would give her the answers she needed. "Tenten..."

"I'm sorry!" the child interrupted before Mei could utter another word, catching her off-guard, "I...I didn't mean to be disrespectful, I just - "

"It's...it's alright, Tenten." It was another moment of silence before Mei finally broke the peace and gestured with her hand for Tenten to come closer. "...Come here, sweetie."

Understandably so, Tenten was hesitant, believing her mother to be angry with the way she had been acting that afternoon. There was no greater dishonor than to feel shame for ones family, especially when there were so many noble members and shinobi loyal to the village. But as the comforting arms wrapped around her, she let herself fall into a warm bubble of serenity that the older woman provided, a place where nothing else mattered but her mother's understanding.

"I wanna tell you a story."


	2. Part 2

**Title**: A Thousand Names - Part 2**  
Character(s)**: OCs: Sarutobi Mei, Takeru, Shirou; brief mentions of Uzumaki Kushina  
**Pairing(s)**: Shirou/Mei  
**Warning(s)**: Creative license of events and making use of unknown information in the Naruto timeline; OCs to fill in the gap that is Tenten's history.  
**Disclaimer**: I own nothing but these words.  
**Note**: Part two of a planned three-shot. Original concept written for Tenten's birthday March 9, 2008, although clearly this was not finished until well after (apologies my dear Tenten! D:). Takes place in the same universe as 'Trapped in Your Legacy' (Chapter 18) and 'Where to Start From' (Chapter 20) from DEB, respectively, with Tenten being the Sandaime's granddaughter.  
**Special thanks to**: malinear from LJ, for helping me flesh out Mei's character.  
**Dedicated to**: Tenten, because everyone deserves some sort of back-story 3

A faint whisper of air was all that could be heard as she tossed a well aimed shuriken from her seat at the counter. Breezing by a forest of hardened wood and tempered steel to embed itself into the far wall with a dull thunk, it landed amid the aerial weapons that were displayed along the wall, and where a set of young fingers were poised over the hilt of a sharp dagger. Almost instantly, a chorus of gasps floated to the kunoichi's ears, doing well to drown out the initial yelp of shock and rustling of clothing as all attention shifted to her. Mei, however, remained unfazed and nonchalant while she continued to shuffle through the week's inventory report, retaining the same calm demeanor she normally reserved for shinobi business.

"Just because I'm not looking doesn't mean I can't see," came her curt response to their wide-eyed stares, fingers moving swiftly to scribble down small notations along the margins, "Now, unless you intend to actually buy something here, I suggest you guys leave."

It was then that the young kunoichi finally lifted her gaze up from the crumpled sheets of paper to the group of young boys huddled in the corner, regarding each and every one of them with a careful eye as if she were committing to memory every detail of their faces. In truth, there was no malice in Mei's intent, simply an old shinobi trick to intimidate a lesser opponent in order to avoid any sort of conflict. True, it had been a long time since she had the luxury of using it in actual battle. But to instill a lesson into their young minds, it would be more than enough of a threat...for now.

There was a momentary pause, as if the young group of delinquents were considering their options: to leave quietly with all their limbs and bodily functions in tact, or to stay and take their chances with a well-established kunoichi of the village. Then in an instant, the scrape and scuffle of scrambling feet were all that could be heard as they thundered out the door like a herd of deer rushing off to save themselves from a violent blaze. And it was simply the two of them once more, Mei shifting attention back onto the paperwork set out in front of her, and Takeru continued to sweep the dusty floors of the store.

He had been left in charge while Shirou went to oversee a business transaction in the land of Rain to the west of the Fire Country. A refugee of the former Whirlpool Village himself, the elder man could only give a soft snicker and a chuckle as the door creaked closed with a soft screech of the rusting hinges. He had always been amused at how naive some people could be when it came to Mei's ranking among the elite shinobi of the village. And the young woman could only flash a fleeting smile in his direction. All the while, everything soon settled back into the quiet stillness that had existed before, haunting the shop with its calm serenity all week...or so she would have liked for him to believe.

Instead, earthy-brown eyes stared at the empty space in front of her, unseeing and unfocused to the actual world around them. To some degree, the kunoichi could still register what was happening around her, the long years of training her senses working to allow her body to function with little conscious thought. But on the whole, Mei could only see the snippets and instances that flashed across the walls of her mind, moments she had spent with the young man from the former Whirlpool Village, searching for the signs or clues that were simply not there. And perhaps, that was the reason why she felt so lost in such a storm of confusion.

Mei had known from the beginning that Shirou had his secrets. During such a time when friends could very well turn into enemies in a blink of an eye, ones past could be a dangerous liability to have. And it was with that conscious knowledge that the young kunoichi had accepted his decision to leave behind the last and only connection to the life he had lived before arriving in Konoha. By dropping his surname he could start over again. Before, she had thought it to be a noble and symbolic act, a step towards overcoming the tragedies that had befallen the village and people of Whirlpool, in fact. But never in her wildest dreams did Mei even think to believe that he might have been hiding something as well, that Shirou was attempting to erase such a prominent part of his past.

What had turned him away from such a life? More so, why could she not accept the fact that he had chosen not to tell her about _this_ when she had not questioned Shirou on anything else concerning his life before Hidden Leaf? These were the questions that she simply could not forget or ignore. And the lack of answers was slowly driving her insane.

It was then that gentle fingers wrinkled with age and experience closed around her own, bringing the kunoichi out from her dark musings as Mei's gaze slowly lifted to meet the grey truths of Takeru's eyes. They seemed to be asking her a silent question, maybe even offering an unspoken word of comfort in an attempt to slay the demons that plagued the young woman's thoughts. Or, perhaps, it had been nothing more than a figment of the young woman's imagination, a troubled mind simply fathoming ways to ease the weight of stress that had been her burden to carry ever since Kushina had let it slip that... Whatever the reason, all Mei could do was flash him a small smile of reassurance before letting it disappear from sight while she pulled her hand out from under the weight of his. Let Takeru take what he would from that gesture. But for Mei, there could be little comfort for her on this matter, not where Shirou was concerned.

The elder man stood there a moment more, his hand resting lightly on the counter where hers had been before she chose to remove it. And then his fingers were pulled back, gliding off of the polished wood to resume his idle sweeping as if nothing had just occurred between them. But regardless of how either of them decided to address the situation, it was hard to ignore the weight of tension lingering in the air, especially after existing in it for a number of days now. And Mei was not the sort of person that would allow others to take on the burdens that she preferred to carry alone.

"How have we been doing on sales this week, Takeru?" she inquired with a casual air, eyes never leaving the black print scrawled across the paper in front of her.

"Fairly well, Mistress," the elder man replied, his tone notably more upbeat than before.

She could practically hear the smile in his voice while he spoke. There was so much pride and assurance as he informed her of their accomplishment in his master's absence. And rightly so. Running a business was no easy feat, even with the considerable amount of experience both had gained through the years while helping Shirou out at the weapon shop. It almost made the young woman regret having to break his spirits. But some things were necessary; working and living in the shinobi business had taught Mei that long ago.

"Good. Then you can go home. And turn the sign over on your way out, please?"

"P...pardon?"

"If sales have been as good you say, then we can spare an afternoon off. Besides, I'm not particularly in the mood to receive any more customers today."

Quietly, Mei waited to hear some sort of response from the elder man, expecting something along the lines of fury or shock at her calm dismissal of his services for the rest of the day. She expected it, and perhaps a part of her was hoping for him to contest her on the matter so that the young kunoichi could direct her energy elsewhere. After all, despite having a close relationship with the owner of the establishment, nothing entitled her to any authority over the employees who worked there. But the only sound that followed was a still silence, the light scratch of the parchment as she continued to make notes on the inventory reports. Another pause passed before she thought to look up from her work, flitting a glance up at the old man and his reaction where a pair of soft eyes in a look of confusion and a hint of disbelief greeted the kunoichi's earthly hues.

"I've still got some things to take care of here, but you go ahead," Mei said, as if she actually believed that was what he had been waiting to hear, "I'll clean up here before I leave."

"...As...you wish, Mistress Mei." Although he obeyed her request, she could still tell that the old Whirlpool refugee was reluctant to leave his post. The hesitation, both in his words and his actions, was unmistakable. But there was little that could be done now. Mei had said her piece and Takeru had yielded. Her mind was set, and the elder man knew better than to challenge it. And so, it was not long before the front door closed with a soft click in his departure, leaving the young woman alone with her thoughts once more.

Free from the obligation of holding up a calm facade that had always been expected of her, Mei gave a long and heavy sigh, releasing a small amount of pent up stress and anxiety that had slowly collected over the past few days and simply let the peace of the empty shop engulf her entire being with their sharp-edged comfort. Though she had been taught the ways of deception since childhood, keeping up with falsities was still a trying thing to experience and maintain, especially when it involved convincing those closest to her to believe the lie. But there, surrounded by the things that had always given her support and endlessly devoted service throughout her career as a shinobi of Konoha, none of that mattered. Only the calm and steady beat of her heart that seemed to sing out in the stillness.

Hidden behind the four walls of Shirou's weapons shop, she could allow herself to feel safe and protected, shielded from the outside world. It had served as the kunoichi's sanctuary for countless years when life as a loyal agent of the leaf and the only daughter of the village's current Hokage had become too much for the young woman to bear. Far away from the trials and tragedies that would seek to test her, away from the doubts and disappointments she faced as part of a clan legacy, Mei was allowed to be free of the expectations that were placed on her shoulders since the moment she had been born into the Sarutobi family. But while that still remained true of the place, nothing could keep the weighted truth of Shirou's past from causing turmoil to rage on within her mind.

So she growled in frustration and abandoned the task at hand, finding no other reprieve suitable to express the inner torment and utter helplessness that came with being perpetually stuck in a situation such as this. It was neither her place nor her right to be angry with Shirou for keeping this a secret from her. That was a lifetime ago far in the distant past, long before the fall of the great and cherished Whirlpool Village, before either of them had ever even met. These things held no importance in the life that he led now, his loyalty and dedication promised to another shinobi village. Mei understood that, saw the logic in believing such a notion after all the years he had spent in service to Konoha. But -- and the fact that there was one was what unnerved Mei most -- a person did not simply decide to leave something like that on a whim. From what she knew of Shirou, he was not the type of person to turn away from responsibility like that. Even if he were, if he had been such a person once before... The young woman had thought that after all this time, after everything the two of them had been through, both in their friendship and what Mei had hoped was a promising relationship, she had thought...

_What? What did you think, Mei?_ The question echoed mockingly within the walls of her mind, but came without an answer. A week before, the kunoichi had believed their relationship strong and special, that they could tell each other any and everything. But now, where they stood was every bit a mystery as the years Shirou had spent as... "If he could keep something like _this_ from me, what else could he possibly be hiding?..."

Deft and slender fingers moved to smooth over the faint creases in her forehead when just as the bell hanging over the entrance gave a soft ring, indicating the arrival of another -- another distraction, another disturbance, another annoyance to further drive her insane with unresolved issues -- into the shop. Mei did not even bother to look up from where she sat at the front counter, simply taking up the pencil to continue the false facade the young woman had dropped only moments before. Already, from what she could see of the shadows playing along the floor of the shop, the sun was making its slow descent into the western horizon. And the kunoichi could only curse quietly to herself while soft footsteps moved around around the displays of pikes, spears and bo staffs, making their way towards her.

"I'm sorry, we're clo - " she started to say. But the moment Mei had allowed herself to actually shift her gaze up to address the customer, all other thoughts left the young woman's mind.

There standing before her stood Shirou in all his travel-worn glory, a gentle smile lingering on his lips and a weariness in his dark eyes. Streaks of dirt from the road branched out across the pale surface of the young man's face, marking the end of another successful trip untainted by danger or death. And Mei could only give an shuttering sigh of great relief, her heart finally finding reason to beat once more. With negotiations bouncing back and forth between the shinobi nations, it was getting harder and harder for even merchants and traders to pass from one country to the next without having to hire escorts for protection and security. And with each journey that Shirou took alone beyond the walls of the village, her fear for him grew. But there was no other who could go in his stead, Shirou being a master of his craft. So both had to endure through the trials that came with living in a world on the brink of war.

A small smile formed before she could stop it, letting herself get lost in the overwhelming feeling of joy at his return. He was safe. He was home. And for a few moments while their eyes locked together, nothing else mattered. All the anger and confusion that had consumed the kunoichi's thoughts for the past few days since Kushina had let that sliver of information concerning Shirou's past slip was gone the moment she saw him standing there in front of her in one piece. And she supposed, as the beat of her heart threatened to pound through the bone of her chest, this was how _he_ felt every single time she had left and returned safely from a mission.

"Hey..." Mei greeted softly.

"Hey," Shirou greeted in return, stepping up beside her to place a soft kiss against her temple, a gesture she wanted to return tenfolds if only it would mean that she could hold on to this feeling forever.

Admittedly, she had missed him, in every way a friend should...in every way a woman could for a man she had know for the better part of five years ever since they first met that day in the hospital. And in that feeling of longing for his presence, it was easy to forget about everything else in favor of simply enjoy the moment while it still lingered.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here when I got back."

But as all things go, nothing was destined to last. And just as quickly as the world of doubts and questions had fallen away from her mind, Mei's thoughts were instantly brought back to reality, the small show of affection disappearing to make way for the sharp shift in her demeanor.

"There were no missions for me today," she replied with her usual courtesy, yet an angered undertone could be heard as well, if one were to listen closely enough.

"Really?" the former citizen of Whirlpool inquired, "With things the way they are between the shinobi nations? That's...a bit odd."

Mei gave a shrug, her eyes drifting down to focus on the neglected sheets of inventory reports set out in front of her. "I don't assign the missions. I just accept them when they're given to me."

From the corner of her eye, she saw Shirou shift around in his stance to regard her curiously. Perhaps it had been the way she had responded to his last statement, or maybe it was in the notable way her mood had changed, but he knew that something was off.

"...O...k..." he responded hesitantly. However, despite his suspicions -- maybe even because of them -- he continued on with his usual routine, already moving to store his traveling gear. "Well, that still doesn't explain what you're doing here."

"I wasn't aware that I ever needed a reason."

The sound of his footsteps faded with every step he took towards the back room, voice echoing out while he continued to speak. "Usually you don't. But with the village on high alert, I would've thought - "

"- Enough, Shirou," Mei snapped, an unintentional reaction to what felt like prodding on his part. She regretted it the moment the words were out, however, his shifting movement growing louder while he made to stand at the door leading to the workshop in the back. Quickly, she followed up the outburst in a more calm manner, turning to glance in Shirou's general direction from out the corner of her eye while adding, "High alert or not, my father seems to think that there are no assignments for me today, and there's little I can do about that. So please...stop."

"...Sorry." If she could describe the feeling that came with the gentle way his voice resounded against the four walls of the weapons shop, the young kunoichi would say it felt like a thousand daggers piercing through the soft tissue of her heart. She could practically feel the prickle of the paper thin edges sliding through the spaces between her ribs to strike at their target, strong and true. Shirou sounded so apologetic and understanding in that simple, one-worded phrase, despite having no idea where her hostility was coming from. "I'm guessing you're having a bad day?"

Here, Mei gave a quiet sigh. She put down the pencil in her hand and leaned forward to rest an elbow on the surface of the counter. Slender fingers made to press against the creases in her forehead. The last thing she wanted was to scowl at his behavior, but after that display of concern, it was hard not to feel guilty about being upset with him. And if there was one thing the young woman hated, it was feeling that her emotions were unwarranted. "...You could say that..."

"Is that why Takeru's not here?" The kunoichi could practically see the arch in his brow at the statement, but decidedly chose not to acknowledge it.

"I decided to send him home early," she stated coolly.

"Heh, lucky man." Shirou gave a soft chuckle at the playful comment, more than likely hopping that it would lighten the mood. But no laughter came from Mei, and so his moment of mirth was short-lived. From where she sat, the kunoichi could hear Shirou shift from foot to foot while the uncomfortable tension between them only grew. Both seemed hesitant to address the matter, with good reason. But while Mei simply did not wish to bring up a possibly sensitive subject for him, Shirou was not the sort to let things be left unsaid.

"So, then..." he began, his breath a whisper in her ear as he stepped up and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, "Are you going to tell me what's really the matter?"

"I don't know if I should..."

"Come on, Mei. We could always tell each other everything."

For a brief moment in time, she debated over her options: to confront him about the matter that had been bothering her for the past few days, or to simply step down from her crusade and let Shirou come to her when he was ready. For a number of years now, the choice had been his. And he had chosen to keep it quiet, even after their friendship turned into something more, after their relationship had became much more serious. Thus, a choice was made.

"I think that's the problem."

"...What?"

And in that instance, Mei steeled herself for the conversation that was to come with her decision. With her free hand, she reached under the counter and closed around the metal plate of the forehead protector that laid hidden underneath, there to further taunt and torment the emotions that had raged through the kunoichi's mind for the past few days. With little care or caution for the rusted condition of it, she tossed the worn talisman and let it clatter across the wooden surface for the world to see. The same swirl symbol that she had seen a thousand times in Kushina's old hitai ate was etched in the aging steel, three deep marks scratched across the surface to indicate the dishonorable discharge of a working agent. "You never told me you used to be a shinobi of Uzu."

A pause, one she could only think was the cause of some level of shock at the sudden topic. The arms around her shoulder were gone in an instant, slipping from where they rested while the shock settled. And then, Shirou gave a soft sigh. "...Kushina talks too much."

--

**AN**: Nothing much happened in this part, I know. It'll get better in the next. Also, sorry if this part seems like it was dragging.


End file.
